It’s now been three full weeks here in Seoul, and I can’t believe time is moving so quickly. Last weekend I spent my time exploring two areas of Seoul called Gangnam and Seongsu. Gangnam is a more upscale neighborhood, full of high-end stores which I of course explored, however my favorite part was Goto, an underground mall in Gangnam that is just the opposite. Goto felt like it extended on forever, full of very affordable clothing, shoes, and accessories that would cost three times as much in the US for the same quality. Seongsu is probably the best shopping neighborhood in Seoul, as there are stores that sell everything, like makeup, snacks, clothes, glasses, perfume and more. Seongsu also has many flagship stores for cool brands selling glasses and bags, as well as tons of popup stores that are only there for a limited time and often sell limited items or offer cool experiences while in the store. Seongsu also has many great cafes, so I went to one with my friends, and then created (another) DIY phone case! Since we work full time all week, I really enjoy maximizing my weekend time to do as much as possible. That is one aspect of my internship abroad that is much different from my study abroad experience, because walking form class to class and finding space to study allowed for much more movement around Seoul, whereas my internship placement keeps me confined to this neighborhood. While I do typically get a one and a half hour lunch break as well as a twenty to thirty minute break in the afternoon, I never have enough time to leave the neighborhood or really settle down in a cafe. However, this is just my experience at my internship placement; I know that other people have very different experiences, some people getting to spend days outside of the office, and some people with even less rest time than I get. To add to the foods list, I have had really good beef pho, bibimbap (a variety of mixed vegetables and rice, a little spicy), and a few repeats from weeks before.
One part of Korean work culture that is new to me is that the work day typically ends at six pm. For me, I have to work until seven pm two days each week, and that feels much later than the US’s typical five pm schedule. This means that there is a little less time to do hobbies, cook and eat dinner, and relax after work before you have to go right back in again, which is not my favorite. However, the hour and a half long lunch break that my company affords is quite nice. The cafe culture in Korea is certainly supported by this long lunch break, because I find myself in a cafe practically everyday after I finish lunch. I’m not sure that the long lunch break offsets the late leaving time, but it definitely is nice to be able to walk around and enjoy the midday sun and weather in between periods of sitting in the office.
In general, and this is a somewhat strange thing to mention, Korean people– or at least people in Seoul– tend not to walk on the right or left side of the sidewalk. This is so off-putting for me because in the US we are pretty good about doing that, whether you realize it or not. Here, people wave through the crowds, often creating a middle lane for one direction, and the sides of the sidewalk go the other way. If you are ever trying to get somewhere fast, this phenomenon makes it really difficult to predict where people will be and often leads to last minute dodging or shoulder bumping. It is not the biggest cultural difference in the world, but it is something that I notice every single day whether I am going to work, grabbing dinner at night, in a college neighborhood, or in the subway station in Seoul that typically hosts the older people of Seoul.
Other than these two things, Korean culture was not too difficult for me to adapt to given that I have been here before. This time around there are no culture shocks or uncomfortable surprises, and I’m even more comfortable with the language than I was before so there have been little to no barriers there. Also, since my last experience was in an educational setting with both Koreans and foreigners, I feel like it eased me into Korean culture and ways of life, so now that I am here professionally, working my first office job, and surrounded by mostly Korean adults, it has not been a complete 180 from my previous experiences. I feel fortunate that although I am experiencing a ton of new things and learning a lot here, my previous experiences have taken most of the burden of the natural discomfort that comes with traveling off of my shoulders so I can go to as many different restaurants and cafes as possible during my work weeks and not feel drained from completely new sensory experiences.
